Dubai: Prosecutors have warned women not to become the victims of men who give them promises of marriage so they can then can swindle them out of cash.

Women should follow all legal means when it comes to marriage and beware of “hoodwinkers," who resort to “sweet-talking” and make off with thousands of dirhams, warned senior chief Prosecutor Yousuf Foulad on Monday.

His warning came following a case at Dubai Misdemeanour Court in which a woman was conned out of Dh430,000 which she gave to a man to arrange their marital home.

“Women should be cautious and should not be hasty in trusting any potential husband so quickly. Too many hoodwinkers resort to sweet-talking and give would-be-wives shady marriage promisesâ¦ those promises are nothing but booby-traps that such men take advantage of to victimise the women. Women and their parents should be more attentive in that regard, and constantly follow the legal channels to have their rights protected,” said Foulad.

Prosecutors charged the suspect with breach of trust and swindling Dh430,000 from the woman who was supposed to become his wife, according to Foulad.

“According to the primary interrogations that were conducted by Prosecutor Hamda Ahli, the suspect took from the woman Dh320,000 in cash and Dh100,00 worth of furniture to organise their marital home. The woman handed the money to the defendant during last year’s second half.

"The suspect abused the power of attorney that the woman granted to him and kept the money for himself," he added. "Prosecutors will always combat such crime and criminals and seek to enforce the toughest punishments against them."